Len Carlson
Description
Len Carlson was a Canadian voice actor whose career in animated television spanned from the 1960s to the 2000s. He was born on September 2, 1937, in Edmonton, Alberta, and passed away on January 26, 2006. Prior to his acting career, he was a professional baseball player for a San Francisco Giants farm team.
Carlson’s voice acting portfolio includes several hundred episodes of various animated series, with a significant portion of his work produced by the Canadian studio Nelvana. He is known for a wide range of character voices, from gruff villains to warm-hearted paternal figures. One such paternal role was Papa Kitty in the 1987 series Hello Kitty's Furry Tale Theater, where he voiced the father of the title character.
One of his most prominent and long-running roles was Bert Raccoon on the Canadian series The Raccoons, a character he voiced in both television specials starting in 1980 and the regular series which ran from 1985 to 1991. In addition to providing the voice, Carlson also served as a voice director for the show from 1990 to 1991.
His other major television roles include Professor Coldheart in the 1980s DiC version of Care Bears, Senator Robert Kelly on X-Men: The Animated Series, the original Green Goblin on the 1967 Spider-Man series, and Ganon on the animated segments of The Super Mario Bros. Super Show. He was also the voice of Buzz on the educational series Cyberchase, Mr. Frumble on The Busy World of Richard Scarry, Pappy Polie on Rolie Polie Olie, and the title character on the short-lived Swamp Thing animated series.
Beyond television, Carlson had a notable career as a commercial voice actor. For decades, he was the voice of Kraft Canada advertisements, and he also provided the voice of the Jolly Green Giant for Canadian commercials. He performed the opening narration for Canadian musician Lawrence Gowan’s 1985 music video A Criminal Mind.
In his later years, Carlson continued to work extensively, with roles on series such as Beyblade, Medabots, Pecola, Donkey Kong Country, and Atomic Betty. His final role was as Cosmo Starfinder on Bigfoot Presents: Meteor and the Mighty Monster Trucks.
Carlson’s voice acting portfolio includes several hundred episodes of various animated series, with a significant portion of his work produced by the Canadian studio Nelvana. He is known for a wide range of character voices, from gruff villains to warm-hearted paternal figures. One such paternal role was Papa Kitty in the 1987 series Hello Kitty's Furry Tale Theater, where he voiced the father of the title character.
One of his most prominent and long-running roles was Bert Raccoon on the Canadian series The Raccoons, a character he voiced in both television specials starting in 1980 and the regular series which ran from 1985 to 1991. In addition to providing the voice, Carlson also served as a voice director for the show from 1990 to 1991.
His other major television roles include Professor Coldheart in the 1980s DiC version of Care Bears, Senator Robert Kelly on X-Men: The Animated Series, the original Green Goblin on the 1967 Spider-Man series, and Ganon on the animated segments of The Super Mario Bros. Super Show. He was also the voice of Buzz on the educational series Cyberchase, Mr. Frumble on The Busy World of Richard Scarry, Pappy Polie on Rolie Polie Olie, and the title character on the short-lived Swamp Thing animated series.
Beyond television, Carlson had a notable career as a commercial voice actor. For decades, he was the voice of Kraft Canada advertisements, and he also provided the voice of the Jolly Green Giant for Canadian commercials. He performed the opening narration for Canadian musician Lawrence Gowan’s 1985 music video A Criminal Mind.
In his later years, Carlson continued to work extensively, with roles on series such as Beyblade, Medabots, Pecola, Donkey Kong Country, and Atomic Betty. His final role was as Cosmo Starfinder on Bigfoot Presents: Meteor and the Mighty Monster Trucks.
All Characters
- EnglishAnime overview: Hello Kitty's Furry Tale Theater